The LANGE 1 was the first watch of the new era and has been A. Lange & Söhne's undisputed icon for 25 years. This is why the manufactory is celebrating the anniversary of the award-winning watch with a "25th Anniversary" edition in white gold limited to 250 timepieces. Its special features include a deep-blue printed argenté dial with a recess, blue date numerals, a hinged cuvette with an engraving of Lange's headquarters and a hand-engraved balance cock with blued lines.

The 24th of October 1994 is the most important date in A. Lange & Söhne's recent history. It is the day on which company founder Walter Lange and his partner Günter Blümlein presented the first four new-era wristwatches at the Dresden Palace, including the LANGE 1. The asymmetric arrangement of its dial triggered discussions, and its technical facets such as the outsize date and the twin mainspring barrel were enthusiastically received.

In the beginning, every style-defining design is polarising. This is because it must overcome ha-bitual expectations to unfold its aesthetic appeal. The LANGE 1 is a good example. An outsize date and an asymmetric dial layout paired with a lavishly finished mechanical calibre in the mid 1990s, this was deemed a provocation by many people. But the unusual design attracted considerable attention and made A. Lange & Söhne famous again overnight.

The historic event that put A. Lange & Söhne back on the map of international precision watch-making in 1994 is recalled in the anniversary year of 2019 with a collection of different models in white gold that pay tribute to the key milestones of the LANGE 1 watch family. The hallmarks they share are an argenté-coloured dial in solid silver with printed deep-blue numerals and hour markers, blue date numerals, and a colour-coordinated blue alligator leather strap with a grey seam.

The LANGE 1 marks the kick-off of the "25th Anniversary" series: it has been crafted virtually un-changed since 1994. Its movement is what reflects its technical evolution. The manually wound calibre L121.1 introduced in 2015 includes a precisely jumping outsize date display and a freely oscillating Lange balance spring. Paired with a large cam-poised balance, it assures superb rate accuracy. The opulently finished movement as was the case with the first LANGE 1 calibre L901.0 features a twin mainspring barrel with a power reserve of 72 hours as well as typical Lange quality hallmarks. Noteworthy elements are the three-quarter plate made of untreated German silver, eight screwed gold chatons, and the hand-engraved balance cock. It exhibits a very special engraving: the outsize date with a "25" that symbolises the 25th anniversary. The manually executed lines of the new engraving pattern are blued for the first time and thus stand out with a particularly rich contrast.

Technical Specifications: Ref. 191.066

The case, in 18kt white gold, measures 38.5mm x 10.7mm. It has double sapphire crystals. Crown for winding the watch and setting the time; push piece for rapid correction of the outsize date. Engraved hinged cuvette crafted in 18kt white gold. The engraving depicts the Lange headquarters that date back to 1873, the names of Walter Lange and Günter Blümlein, and a relief engraving of the inscription "25 YEARS LANGE 1".

Movement is the German manual-wind Lange in-house caliber L121.1 with 43 jewels (8 screwed gold chatons), 21,600 vph and a power reserve of 3 days. It features a lever escapement. Shock-resistant cam-poised balance; balance spring manufactured in-house, precision beat adjustment system with lateral setscrew and whiplash spring. Crafted to the most exacting Lange quality standards, decorated and assembled by hand; precision-adjusted to five positions; plates and bridges made of untreated German silver; balance cock engraved by hand.

I just received an email from Lange announcing this watch, as well as stating that an additional Lange 1 special edition would be announced each month this year until the official 25th Anniversary on October 24th. If each limited edition is 250 pieces, that equates to 2500 total Lange 1s. That represents about 50% of Lange's total yearly production. It would seem that could cause availability issues with "normal" Lange 1s, as well as the other lines. It will be interesting to see how the 25th Anniversary Collection develops. I expect that there will be some markedly higher end and much more limited production variants introduced in the months to come.

A limited production run of 2500 would not be "limited" unless your Panerai or something but their overall production is much larger than Lange. I suspect this will be the only watch to celebrate the "25th Anniversary" or possibly a box set in different metals, but not 2500 pieces.

The white gold/argente/blue anniversary model is announced as a run of 250 units. The email then goes on to identify a Lange 1 25th Anniversary Collection, which is comprised of 1 new LE per month until the actual anniversary date (10/24/19). If all following LE's are 250 unit runs, that would equate to 2500 total units across the collection. I'm guessing that future LE's might include Time Zone, Tourbillon, or other variants that would be in runs of much less than 250 each. In any case, it will be interesting to see if this is how Lange celebrates their 25th Anniversary, or if any completely new products are introduced.